Dracula (Universal, R-1938). One Sheet (27" X 41").
When Lon Chaney, Universal's original choice to play Count Dracula,
passed away, the studio cast Bela Lugosi in the title role. Lugosi
was a Hungarian actor who became famous on the stage as Bram
Stoker's undead count and whose thick accent brought a distinctive
European flair of nobility to the role. The film was a major
success for the studio upon its release in February 1931 and
solidified Universal's association with the horror genre. By 1938,
Universal had created several horror films that had achieved
financial success for the studio as well as cult status with the
public. It was time to introduce a new generation of filmgoers to
the original horror shows that started it all - Frankenstein
and Dracula. The studio decided to get a bit creative with
their first reissue of Dracula, and issued the film with
green tinting on some of the prints. To mirror the green tinted
prints, the studio printed a one sheet that used the same dark
greens and black, giving the headshot of Lugosi a very menacing
pose. The image of Lugosi is as classic as it gets - and is
incredibly similar to the original style A one sheet. This poster
was unknown for many years and to this date, no other copies of
this 1938 re-release one sheet have surfaced. However, in 2003,
this copy rose from its crypt in Latrobe, PA, and made its way into
a collector's hands. It was then that its true value was recognized
as one of the most atmospheric horror posters, capturing Bela
Lugosi in his most important role: one of the most famous icons of
the cinema. The poster has had minor color touchups to the fold
lines and some minor tears in the borders. There were several
pinholes in the dark green background, primarily in the upper and
lower corner areas and there was a small chip off of the lower
right corner. All of these minor issues were professionally
restored so that the poster appears very clean. Provenance; The
Latrobe Collection and the Nicolas Cage Collection. Fine+ on
Linen.